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"Isn't it?" Tansy beamed. "Just don't leave them out too long or they'll start getting into mischief."

"What kind of mischief?" I asked curiously. After all, how much trouble could three little pieces of candy get into?

Tansy shrugged.

"Oh, they like to rearrange things. Small objects, mostly. Pens, keys, that sort of thing. They hide them and you have to hunt for them."

Thinking of the huge griffon-headed iron key to Blackthorn Manor I still had, I hastily scooped the little candy dancers back into the bag.

“What’s the matter? Don’t you like dancing candy corn?” Bartleby asked.

" They’re cute, but I definitely don't need anything moving Garrik's keys around. He'd have a fit!" I said.

"Yes, I imagine he would," Tansy said, laughing.

She took me over to the check-out line and began ringing up my purchases on an old-fashioned cash register with enormous brass buttons. Every time she pressed one, the register made a cheerful little chime, and a tiny puff of colored smoke rose from the top. It was certainly a lot nicer than all the self-checkout lines we had back home in Tampa.

When Tansy finished, she gave me the total, which was considerably more than I'd intended to spend.

"Oh, wow!" I exclaimed, looking at the little pile of gold and silver coins I had to hand over. "I guess I got a little carried away."

"Just a bit," Bartleby remarked smugly.

"Oh, hush," I told him. "At least I bought some actual food, too."

"And a jar of magical air freshener," he pointed out. "And a snow globe without the snow. And some chocolate that shoots sparks."

"Well, they're souvenirs!" I protested. "I want something to remember Hidden Hollow by when I go home."

For some reason, saying those words made me feel a little strange. I had only been in Hidden Hollow for a day, but already I was beginning to think of it as a place I'd miss when I left. The gorgeous Fall weather…the friendly people…the magical shops—it was all so different from my ordinary life back in Tampa.

And of course, there was Garrik. There was certainly no one like the big, muscular, handsome ghost back home.

I pushed that thought aside. I wasn't going to think about Garrik right now, I told myself. Especially not about how good it had felt when he'd held me in his arms that morning.

Tansy finished counting the coins and then produced a large green shopping bag that looked much too small to hold everything I'd bought. In fact, it was hardly bigger than the little green purse filled with coins that Garrik had given me.

"Here you are, dear," she said, beginning to put my purchases inside.

I watched in amazement as she fit the loaf of bread, the cheese, the coffee, the jars, and all the other things into the bag. Somehow, everything fit perfectly, even though the bag didn't get any bigger.

When she finished, she handed it to me.

"Go on, try lifting it."

I took the bag and almost dropped it because it weighed practically nothing.

"Oh my God!" I exclaimed. "How does it do that?"

"Enchanted storage," she explained. "The inside is much larger than the outside, and the weight is magically reduced. Very handy for shopping."

"I'll say!" I looked down into the bag, trying to see where everything had gone. But all I could see was a dark space that seemed to stretch away much farther than it should have.

"Just be sure to put your hand inside and think about what you want when you're taking things out," Tansy instructed. "Otherwise, you might be rummaging around in there for quite a while."

"Got it," I said, nodding. "Thank you so much! You've been really helpful."

"Oh, it's my pleasure, dear!" she exclaimed. "And do give Garrik my regards when you get back to Blackthorn Manor. Tell him Tansy Thistledown says hello and that he really ought to come visit us again once he's back on his feet. Or rather, back in his body."